Trying to leave CA

July 7th

We left Sebastopol at 10am and started our trip East. Everything was going very smooth, too smooth. About half way between Auburn and Truckee we came to a complete stop. Through a gap in the trees ahead of us, we could see a huge plume of smoke. Minutes later, a fire bomber, spotter plane, and two helicopters with water buckets started flying around the plume. From behind us, several fire trucks, CHP vehicles and Cal Fire truck with bulldozer all passed us heading to the fire. We waited for over 40 minutes, then traffic started slowly inching forward. We only went about a mile, and the CHP was detouring us on to the Westbound side of Interstate 80. We drove west until we found an exit that we could pull over and re-evaluate our destination for the day. The news was telling us that 80 would open back up by 4:15pm. It was currently 3pm. We decided to wait it out. By 5:30pm, the road was still not open. I found some National Forest campgrounds near us on Campendium, and I thought it would be better for us to just stop for the night. We stayed at Parker Flat OHV staging area, near Foresthill, CA. The entire area is set up for off-highway-vehicles, with trails for riding. We had our choice of campgrounds, because no one else was here.

July 8th

Our luck continued today. We left the campground at about 9:30am and headed east, hoping to get across Nevada today. We stopped at Donner summit for a break and quick hike. But to our dismay, we got stuck in a massive traffic jam about 10 miles from the Nevada border. 80 was closed again, and we sat in a parking lot for 2 hours. It was if someone was trying to keep us from leaving California. We finally got moving, and never figured out why we were stopped. Then we hit Reno traffic. It was a relief to finally get off of 80 and start heading down Highway 50 from Fallon. So much amazing scenery on 50. The towns of Austin and Eureka are so cool. We found another amazing BLM campground outside of Eureka, NV, call Illipah Reservoir Campground. It’s free and there are only 6 other campsites occupied. We arrived just in time to make dinner and view an amazing sunset.

July 9th

Happy Birthday Mia! Mia woke up early and she opened presents. We were thinking of staying an extra night at Illipah reservoir, so we got out the kayak and headed down to the lake. There are trout everywhere. As you walk up to the water you can see them, and they are jumping constantly. If only I had a Nevada license. Kathy and I both paddled around the small reservoir, then I took Oreo out. He seemed to like it. It was very hot so Kathy and Mia swam in the lake. When we started walking back to out campsite, we noticed a lot of smoke in the air. By the time that lunch was over it was getting pretty thick. Kathy and I decided to get out before it was unbreathable. The smoke is all being blown from California. I gueWe stopped in Ely, NV, and got Mia her Birthday dessert, Doughnuts! We sang Happy Birthday to her in the truck and ate doughnuts as we drove away from Nevada. Hwy 50 in Utah, is not quite as scenic as Nevada, and it was 105 degrees. We stopped in Delta, Utah and are staying in a RV park. The AC was turned on as soon as we had the electric hooked up. Mia had Pizza per her request.